


We Suffer More from Imagination than Reality

by HanukoYoukai



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Family Feels, Gen, Hallucinogens, Happy Hogan is a Good Bro, Hurt/Comfort, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Tony Stark death (mentioned), Whump
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-20
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2021-03-02 21:14:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,870
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24283420
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HanukoYoukai/pseuds/HanukoYoukai
Summary: Peter Parker was trying to take out the green freak that was terrorizing the airport when he got gassed.Happy just wants to get Peter somewhere safe.
Relationships: Happy Hogan & Peter Parker, Happy Hogan/May Parker (Spider-Man)
Comments: 6
Kudos: 40





	We Suffer More from Imagination than Reality

**Author's Note:**

> "We are often more frightened than hurt; and we suffer more from imagination than from reality." --Seneca. 
> 
> Hey y'all. I see you're looking for a little bit of Whump. You've come to the right place. ;-)
> 
> Please leave a kudos if you were entertained, and a comment to let me know your thoughts!
> 
> Enjoy.

“Jesus, kid come on. I got ya—” Happy said, struggling to drag the boy into the jet behind him. Peter fought against the hold, clawing at his own face, and for a moment Happy was relieved that whatever Peter got doused with had sapped his strength. He did not want to go toe to toe with a delirious Spider-Man who was operating at full capacity. It was difficult enough to deal with him in his current state. Happy grunted as he shoved Peter into one of the seats after they boarded the plane. He smashed a button to close the doors. Peter was still frantically scraping his gloved fingers against his face, and Happy recognized that the kid wanted to pull his mask off. The bodyguard moved to help him, and once Peter was free of the constricting fabric he gasped sharply, opening his mouth like a fish out of water. Happy reached out to soothe him with a hand to his shoulder, but Peter vaulted over the back of the seat and scrambled backward, brown eyes wide, revealing blown pupils. Tears were streaking down his face and his mouth opened and closed wordlessly as his head swiveled back and forth. Happy was stunned at his reaction, wondering what the hell was going on with him.

_What was even in the gas? Is the kid hallucinating?_

When Peter went off to fight that green-costumed, hoverboarding, crazy son-of-a-bitch, Happy was worried, but he figured the kid had a better handle on it than most of the SHIELD agents in the area. With the other Avengers occupied elsewhere in Manhattan, this maniac had a golden opportunity to strike. As soon as they arrived on the airfield, Peter kept Happy back and swung in, hoping to stop the villain from leaving the airport. Happy stayed by the jet, but the whole time in the back of his mind all he could think about was how Peter was doing. He kept anxiously glancing around, hoping against hope that Spider-Man would come back soon. A large plum of green smoke rose into the air where Happy last saw Peter fighting. The kid threw himself out of the strange cloud, trying to get away from the flying green monster behind him. He stumbled and fell, holding his arms over his head as orange, glowing spheres were thrown at him. One went off next to him, tossing the kid in the air and towards Happy.

Happy panicked and ran forward, picking Peter up to his feet from the ground. The teenager was gasping and choking. The green monster cackled, still hovering overhead. Happy took Peter back to the jet, shocked and worried by his weak attempts to get away, as well as the gasps and whines coming from his throat. Now that they were actually inside, things were _worse_. The boy jerked and scuttled away from him. With every step forward, the kid slid back, eyes roving back and forth wildly. Happy stilled, terrified at the state Peter was in. The explosions outside jolted him to reality. They had to get out of there, _now_.

“Pete, Pete buddy,” he said. Peter’s eyes locked on him and he cowered back, frightened. “Pete, it’s Happy. Are you with me?”

Peter blinked and shook his head. “Happy?”

“Yeah kid, Happy.”

“You’re… you’re not—”

“I promise, I’m Happy, okay? You got doused with some crap that’s making you see things. I need you to trust me.” Peter shut his eyes tightly, rocking slightly. “Okay. Alright kid, I’m coming to you. Just listen to your Peter Tingle, alright?” the bodyguard said, approaching slowly. “You’re Peter Tingle isn’t going off, right?” Peter shook his head. “That means I’m not a threat. Like when May threw that banana at you. Not a threat. I’m going to touch you now, okay?” Happy asked, reaching a hand toward Peter’s knee. After a moment’s hesitation Peter nodded, and Happy touched his knee gently. Peter jerked a little, but otherwise did not move away. “I got you on the jet,” he said. Another explosion went off, rocking the plane and causing Peter to flinch. “We can’t stay, kid. SHIELD is going to handle this. I need you to sit down and buckle in so we can take off. There’s nothing here. Do you trust me?” Peter trembled; eyes still shut tight. He opened one and glanced at Happy before whimpering and closing his eyes again.

“T-t-tell me something only you would know,” he whispered. Happy sighed.

“We don’t have time—” Peter’s eyes snapped open and he pulled back, pressing his back against the wall of the cabin. “Okay, okay. Um…. Okay. Remember when you told May you were going to Ned’s for the weekend when she had that conference for work? But you didn’t really go to Ned’s, you were setting up that date for your girlfriend at your apartment—”

Peter stared at him, his expression flicking between fear and mortification.

“—and I left my briefcase for work there, so I came in, and I saw those candles and that food on the stove, and you had some murder documentary queued up on Netflix—”

“Okay, Happy,” Peter murmured. Mortification was definitely winning out.

“—and I heard some buzzing and the bathroom door was a little open, so I poked my head in and saw you shaving your—”

“Okay, Happy! I believe you, God _,_ ” Peter said, eyes roving over the bodyguard. His face flushed in embarrassment. “How is it whenever this kind of thing happens, the only things you know are the most embarrassing moments of my life?” he jerked suddenly and glanced to his left, eyes widening as he started to slide away from whatever he was seeing.

“Not real, Pete,” Happy said, causing Peter to turn his head back to Happy. His brows were furrowed, and he was biting his lip, nervously. “Okay, come on now, we’ve got to go,” he said, holding out his hands. Peter glanced down a them and let out a shuddery breath before putting his own hands in his. Happy gently pulled him up as another explosion rocked the jet. Peter flinched and jerked back. “That’s why we gotta go, Pete. You trust me, right?” Happy did not let go of his hands.

Peter nodded and Happy started to pull him back towards the cockpit of the plane. Once they reached the frontmost seats, Happy stopped. “Okay, come over here,” he said, guiding Peter with his hands. The teenager went, flinching and closing his eyes again. “I’m gonna push you down a little so you’re sitting, alright?” Peter nodded and Happy managed to lower him into a seat. He reached down to his lap to grab the belt. Peter gripped the armrests tightly. “I’m buckling you in, alright? Just a lap belt. Safety for taking off.” Peter nodded and Happy snapped the belt together and tightened it slightly. The explosions seemed to be further away from the jet now. Apparently, the green troll found a new target to pursue. Happy reluctantly left Peter to operate the controls in the cockpit. Once the autopilot was set and the Jet began to move, Happy went back to the cabin and sat right next to Peter, who was still gripping the armrests with his eyes shut. His lips were moving, and as Happy moved to buckle his own seatbelt, he heard the teen murmuring, “ _not real_ ,” over and over again.

“It’s gonna be okay, Pete,” he said reaching to grasp the boy’s forearm. He hesitated before he made contact. “Is it okay if I touch you? Will that help?” Peter stopped moving his lips for a minute, his face scrunched up, possibly in pain or in thought—Happy couldn’t tell—before he gave a single nod. Happy set his hand gently on Peter’s arm, gripping it in a solid, companionable way. Peter’s face started to relax as the plane took flight.

“You with me?” Happy asked after a few minutes of silence. Peter sniffled and opened his eyes before slamming them shut and shaking his head. Happy counted his lucky stars that the gas didn’t mess with his danger sense.

“I—I keep seeing—seeing these weird demon-monster things,” Peter bit out. “I can’t—I keep seeing them see me and start coming at me, and I feel really weak.”

Happy rubbed a circle into Peter’s arm, pulling out his cell phone. Peter’s hands started relaxing. “It’s gonna be okay, kiddo. Just keep calm.” Happy started dialing Hill to make sure medical would be ready for them. After a few rings, she picked up.

“Hill,” she said, briskly.

“Hey, Hill, it’s Hogan. I got the kid, and he’s in bad shape. He’s really weak and hallucinating. I haven’t been able to assess any injuries yet,”

“Do what you can. Cho is already here. I’ll get a medical team together. How long?”

“About ten minutes until we touch down,” Happy responded after checking his watch.

“We’ll be ready for you,” Hill responded before ending the call. Happy replaced the phone in his pocket and glanced at Peter. He had let go of the armrests. Happy let out a relieved sigh, glad the boy had calmed down. His relief dissipated when he looked at Peter’s face. The boy’s eyes were open wide, and he was rolling his head listlessly from side to side. Happy caught his brown eyes with his own, startled at the fear he saw there.

“Peter?” Happy asked, touching his arm. He felt the muscle barely tensing beneath his hand.

“Can’t,” Peter whispered. “I can’t move.” His eyelids started to become heavy and he sagged back against the seat, new tears starting to streak down his face.

“Kid,” Happy said, grabbing his chin. Peter startled a little and focused on Happy. “Can you see me?”

Peter blinked. “Happy?”

Happy held Peter’s gaze with his eyes, fingers going from Peter’s chin to his cheek. Peter started to rest his head in the palm of Happy’s hand. “Kid, I’m right here with you. No matter what happens, I’m here, and I’m going to protect you, got it?”

“Huh?” Peter mumbled, eyes starting to close again. They shot open as he focused on something behind Happy. Happy gently tapped Peter’s cheek, getting him to focus again. “It’s not real, Peter. Whatever you see behind me is not real. Do you feel my fingers?”

“Uh-huh,” Peter mumbled listlessly.

“My fingers are real. You can feel them, you know they’re actually there. The things you’re seeing aren’t there, but I am, okay? I’m here, and I’ll take care of you.”

“Why?” Peter asked, dumbly. Happy sat back, momentarily surprised.

“Because you’re important, Pete. You’re important to me, okay? I know that we don’t have the most feely relationship, but you matter, kid,” Happy said, flatly. Peter hummed thoughtfully as his eyes drifted shut. Happy tapped on his face again, watching them blink open. “I don’t want you to fall asleep if you can help it, kid.”

“’Kay,” Peter murmured, his head lolling to the side. His eyes continued to dart around. Happy moved his fingers from Peter’s cheek to his hair, smoothing the wild curls down a bit. “Happy?”

“Yeah kid?” Happy asked, not removing his hand from the teen’s head.

“I’m—I’m _scared_ ,” Peter whispered. “My body feels weird, like it’s too heavy.”

“It’s gonna be okay, kid. We’ll get you sorted out.”

Peter turned his head again to face Happy, frowning. “Really?”

“Yes,” Happy said, resolutely. “You bet your ass we will.” His phone pinged, and he looked down at it, smiling at what he saw. “Hill says Cho is ready for you. We’ll get you to her, and she’ll give you the good stuff, alright?”

“The good stuff?” Peter asked, bemused.

“Yeah. The good stuff. And Cho will figure out how to fix you up.”

“Am I broken?” Peter asked, glancing down at himself. He gasped, startled as he focused on his unmoving hands.

“Eyes up, Pete,” Happy said sternly. Peter looked back at him again. “You’re not broken. Just hurt. You need a doctor, alright?”

Peter blinked and nodded. “Yeah,” he replied.

“We’re almost there. I’ve got you.”

* * *

Happy entered the room to find May sitting quietly at Peter’s bedside, a book in her hands. _The Great British Baking Show_ was playing on the television above them.

“Hey sweetheart,” he said quietly, shutting the door behind him. May looked up from her book and dashed at her eyes, wiping away at the new tears forming there.

“Hey,” she replied, putting her book down. Happy moved toward her with his arms open, and May stood and let him embrace her, sniffling slightly.

“It never gets any easier,” she said into his shoulder. “Every time this happens—he’s a kid, Happy. This shouldn’t happen to him.”

“I know,” Happy murmured, rubbing soothing circles into her back.

Coming back to the compound was absolute chaos. Peter regained some movement, just enough to be a hinderance, and screamed when he saw the medical team. If he could have ran, he would have, Happy was certain of it. After quickly taking his vitals, Cho had him strapped to a medical table, citing that she couldn’t give him a sedative until she got some basic understanding of what was in his system. After Happy spent an hour trying to calm the kid down and get ahold of his aunt, Cho finally came in to give him a sedative and treat his injuries. The stuff that affected him was something she’d seen before, but was an enhanced version, so they would just have to wait for it to leave his system.

“Ever since,” May choked up a little, pressing her face more firmly against Happy’s suit. “Ever since Tony died, he hasn’t talked to anyone about this. He hasn’t talked to Sam or Bruce, which is expected, I guess. I mean, he barely knows them. But he won’t talk to me, either. He just keeps everything bottled up, and he’s been getting more reckless, lately. Whenever he does talk, he goes on about his responsibility as Spider-Man. I don’t know how to get him to stop for a minute and take a break.”

“I know you’re worried, but it’s pretty understandable,” Happy said softly. “The last time he tried to take a break, he was tracked down by Nick Fury of all people.”

May scoffed. “You mean the weird alien we thought was Nick Fury?”

Happy chuckled. “Yeah, that guy.” He pressed a kiss to the top of May’s head.

“Ew,” Happy looked up to see Peter, wide awake and scowling at them. “Come on guys, I just woke up. I don’t need to see that.”

“Peter!” May cried, pulling away from Happy and coming to her nephew’s bedside. She wrapped her arms around him and he returned the embrace. She pulled away and beckoned Happy over. Happy moved to the bed and held out a fist. Peter grinned and bumped it with his own.

“Glad to see you with us, kid.”

“We were so scared!” May said, clinging to Peter once again. “God, Peter, I’ve never seen you like that.”

“I’m sorry, May,” Peter mumbled.

May pulled back and shook her head. “No, no baby I didn’t mean—I’m sorry. You must have been so scared.”

Peter shrugged. “It was kind of like what happened with Beck, but less organized? It didn’t make as much sense but it felt more real.”

“Hallucinogens are funny that way,” Happy offered, shrugging a little. “They completely distort your reality. You didn’t experience that with Mysterio.”

“Better not let him and that goblin-looking guy ever team up, then,” Peter said with a shudder. May rubbed his shoulder. Peter looked up at Happy, biting his lip.

“Happy?”

“Yeah kid?”

“Thanks,” he said seriously. “Thanks for talking sense into me. If you weren’t there, I don’t know what would have happened.”

Happy sat on the edge of the bed on the other side of Peter as May released him from her hug again. “I’d do it all over again for you kid, no hesitation.”

Peter frowned at the words. “Happy—”

“Nope, no arguing,” Happy said, quickly cutting him off. “I don’t—I’m not good at the feelings thing, okay? Never have been. Don’t know what your aunt sees in me.” Peter and May both chuckled a little at that. “So I’m only going to say this once. You are important, and not just because of Spider-Man. The kid that matters to me is Peter Parker, and this world would be a much shittier place without him in it. I love you, kid. You matter. Don’t ever forget that.”

Peter swallowed a little and blinked his eyes rapidly before leaning forward to give Happy a hug. Happy tentatively returned the embrace, clapping him once on the shoulder. Peter pulled away, grinning, and May was dabbing at her eyes again.

“Love you too, Happy,” Peter offered, smirking a little. Happy rolled his eyes.

“Shut up.”

“No really, we should talk about this. Talking about your feelings is healthy. Very manly,” Peter said, snickering. Happy shoved him a little, suddenly understanding why Tony said this kid was making him prematurely gray.

He smiled. Happy wouldn’t have it any other way.

**Author's Note:**

> Fun Writing Notes:
> 
> 1\. I haven't known Gobby to use hallucinogens in canon, but I do know he has gassed Peter several times, sometimes with a paralytic gas. If any one knows of a time he uses this, I'd love to hear about it. 
> 
> 2\. I don't know why Happy keeps catching Peter in these horribly embarrassing situations, but there you are. 
> 
> 3\. I've been watching a lot of British Bake Off lately. It's been working it's way into my fics. I need to stop. 
> 
> 4\. You know in Merlin, when Gwen and Gaius think he's dead, and they hug and Gaius is really affectionate with her because she's all weepy, and then Merling is like "gross, you're old enough to be her grandfather!" That is absolutely the inspiration for the scene where Peter wakes up. 
> 
> 5\. I like uncle Happy, okay? I think he's good for Peter, in a gruff sort of way. Let's just enjoy it. 
> 
> Thanks for reading! If you have any prompts, questions, or just want to say hi, come see me [ @hanuko](com) on Tumblr.


End file.
